Race For Governor: Major League Allies

Some big-name politicians are hitting the campaign trail for Tim Kaine and Jerry Kilgore.

As Virginia's neck-and-neck gubernatorial campaign comes to a close, the major-party candidates are bringing in moderate party bigwigs aimed at attracting independent and undecided voters.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani headlined a Wednesday luncheon in Norfolk for Republican candidate Jerry Kilgore, an event that the campaign hoped would raise $450,000.

It was also meant to broaden voter appeal for the conservative Kilgore, by having a pro-choice, gun-control advocate with a record as a can-do moderate say nice things about him. Kilgore is staunchly pro-life and against gun control.

"I believe he's really going to be a great, great governor for Virginia,'' said Giuliani, who drew two standing ovations from 500 partisans who dined on chicken with crab, potatoes and cheesecake. "It's not just about Republicans. It's about independents and Democrats who want Jerry. I have great respect for Jerry and everything he can do.''

In turn, Kilgore extolled Giuliani as a "trusted leader'' with good judgment who showed his mettle in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York's World Trade Center.

"Virginia needs a leader we can trust,'' Kilgore told the crowd.

Next week, Kilgore is scheduled to attend a veterans rally in Virginia with Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. and a party moderate, said Kilgore's press secretary, Tim Murtaugh. "I think it demonstrates the broad support Jerry enjoys from all parts of the ideological base,'' Murtaugh said.

Not to be outdone, Democratic candidate Tim Kaine spent much of Wednesday in Northern Virginia with Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, a conservative Democrat with appeal outside her party.

In the evening, Kaine was joined by New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson another party moderate -- at an outreach to Hispanic voters in Annandale.

Polls have found that Kilgore held a slight, statistically insignificant lead, with a large bloc of voters undecided. The election is Nov. 8.

Perhaps Kaine's biggest "get'' will occur Sunday. That's when he and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., are to take the stage at two rallies, one in Norfolk and one in Richmond. The freshman senator is widely viewed as a charismatic spokesman of conservative Democratic values.

Kilgore and Kaine have brought in other high-profile party leaders during the campaign. But the flood of big-name moderates heralds the close of the campaign as both candidates grasp for crucial support from independent and undecided voters.

Kilgore, however, is passing up an opportunity to be seen with the GOP's biggest name, President Bush. The president will be in Norfolk on Friday to give a speech on terrorism. But Kilgore's campaign said the candidate wouldn't attend because the event wasn't political and Kilgore had other commitments.

Democrats viewed Kilgore's decision as a way to distance himself from the president. Bush is suffering from the lowest approval ratings of his presidency and isn't likely to be someone who would galvanize independent voters at this point.